I was still a freshman in the Ateneo High School when I first encountered the title of this entry. As most of you may know, this line comes from William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, specifically Brutus' speech after he and his co-conspirators assassinated the titular character for being too ambitious and forsaking the glory of Rome. Unlike Marc Antony's famous "Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me your ears" introduction, Brutus' is somewhat long forgotten. Aside from his purpose of trying to persuade the people of the righteousness of his actions, the opening line was the main reason why I chose to deliver this for my Soliloquy requirement.
But why do I use this title for this so-called swimming blog. It is simple. I wish to begin my blog embodying the confidence of Brutus as he took the pulpit to address the people. While my words are not the consequence of murder or any of the sort, it does come from grievances which I have kept mum about for well over a decade. Now that I am out of the swimming scene, there is no better time to slowly, but surely, unload all of the emotional and psychological baggage I have lugged during my swimming career.
I hold myself accountable to my words. I will offend some people--people who have been my friends for as long as I can remember. Though I cannot promise much, I will promise two other things aside from the accountability I will assume.
First, I will always keep my opinions in line. As McLaughlin eloquently put it in the Tom Cruise movie entitled "Cocktail", "Bury the dead; they stink up the place." I will let the past remain in the past, simply put. I will not allow my words to be driven by emotions which I have buried deep within. Whatever I write will be objective in nature. But from time to time, I will mix these with emotionally-indulgent words which will come off as brash. And I will be accountable for that.
Second, this blog will not be all about unloading these grievances. It is a swimming blog, first and foremost. That said, I will put in some thoughts on training, motivation and leadership techniques which have proven to be both useful and invaluable to me during my amateur swimming career. Also, I will give my opinions about the hottest news in the international swimming scene. And maybe, just maybe, I will feature some swimmers from my alma mater who deserve recognition for their achievements.
This is where my introduction ends. The entries following this one will hopefully shed some light as to what my intentions are. If they do not, I will understand.
Welcome to the my blog, "Songs from the Unsung Swim Star"!
Take your mark!
But why do I use this title for this so-called swimming blog. It is simple. I wish to begin my blog embodying the confidence of Brutus as he took the pulpit to address the people. While my words are not the consequence of murder or any of the sort, it does come from grievances which I have kept mum about for well over a decade. Now that I am out of the swimming scene, there is no better time to slowly, but surely, unload all of the emotional and psychological baggage I have lugged during my swimming career.
I hold myself accountable to my words. I will offend some people--people who have been my friends for as long as I can remember. Though I cannot promise much, I will promise two other things aside from the accountability I will assume.
First, I will always keep my opinions in line. As McLaughlin eloquently put it in the Tom Cruise movie entitled "Cocktail", "Bury the dead; they stink up the place." I will let the past remain in the past, simply put. I will not allow my words to be driven by emotions which I have buried deep within. Whatever I write will be objective in nature. But from time to time, I will mix these with emotionally-indulgent words which will come off as brash. And I will be accountable for that.
Second, this blog will not be all about unloading these grievances. It is a swimming blog, first and foremost. That said, I will put in some thoughts on training, motivation and leadership techniques which have proven to be both useful and invaluable to me during my amateur swimming career. Also, I will give my opinions about the hottest news in the international swimming scene. And maybe, just maybe, I will feature some swimmers from my alma mater who deserve recognition for their achievements.
This is where my introduction ends. The entries following this one will hopefully shed some light as to what my intentions are. If they do not, I will understand.
Welcome to the my blog, "Songs from the Unsung Swim Star"!
Take your mark!
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